1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system for administering medication through the nasal passage of a patient, particularly to a connector used in this system which includes a valve for opening and closing a passageway that introduces the medication through a tube that extends into the nose of the patient.
2. Background Discussion
In many instances a patient cannot receive medication and food through his mouth. In such cases, a nasal gastric tube is employed for introducing medication and food into the stomach of the patient and also for withdrawing fluid from the patient's stomach. This tube is a flexible plastic tube which comes in varying diameters depending upon the size of the patient and the nature of the medication being administered. This tube is fed through the patient's nose, down the esophagus into the patient's stomach. Care is taken not to insert the tube into the lungs of the patient. A portion of the tube extends from the one nostril of the patient and terminates at a point remote from a nostril. A plastic connector is inserted into this open end. This connector has a series of flanges of increasing diameter which will accommodate different sized tubes. There are two sets of flanges at each end of this connector, with the open ends of the connector being connected by a passageway. The end of the connector opposed to the nasal tube is connected to a second tube which is typically connected to a suction when it is desired to remove fluid from the patient's stomach, or to a feeding pump for pumping food into the patient's stomach.
The current practice is to remove this connector from the tube coming from the patient's nose and then injecting medication into the tube. The nurse frequently is spattered with vomit or other fluid when he or she disconnects the connector. Also, occasionally the tube must be clamped off. This is done by removing the connector and attaching the clamp to the end of the tube coming from the patient's nose. This practice is not only a source of inconvenience and uncleanliness, but depending on the nature of the patient's illness, it may also be a way of communicating infectious diseases between the patient and the nurse. Spattering of the stomach fluid could contain infectious material that, if contacted with, for example, the eye of the nurse, could infect her with the disease of the patient.